‘Pennsylvanians can’t be evicted during state of emergency’, AG Shapiro tells landlords

FILE – In this Oct. 17, 2018 file photo, Attorney General Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania speaks at a news conference in the state Capitol after legislation to respond to a landmark grand jury report accusing hundreds of Roman Catholic priests of sexually abusing children over decades stalled in the Legislature in Harrisburg, Pa. A Pennsylvania judge has ruled, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2020, that parents of children in the Roman Catholic Church and survivors of sexual abuse by clergy members can move forward with a lawsuit against the Diocese of Pittsburgh alleging that it has not fulfilled its obligations under state law to report child sexual abusers. The lawsuit was filed in 2018, a month after Shapiro released the state’s landmark grand jury report. (AP Photo/Marc Levy)

HARRISBURG, Pa. (WTAJ) — Attorney General Josh Shapiro has made it clear that Pennsylvanians can NOT be evicted from their homes at this time.

The statement was made Tuesday morning. The PA Supreme Court ordered courts closed to eviction proceedings due to the COVID-19 state of emergency.

That order is applied to all Pennsylvania property owners, managers, and landlords, It also applies to all mortgage brokers and lenders.

In an effort to give affected Pennsylvanians time to get back on their feet, Attorney General Shapiro wrote landlords and mortgage lenders to urge them to extend the time during which eviction proceedings are suspended for a period of time beyond what the Supreme Court requires.

“With millions of Pennsylvanians following Governor Wolf’s direction to stay at home, it is critical that rental evictions cease for the duration of this emergency. Hundreds of thousands of Pennsylvanians have lost wages and jobs during this crisis and we will need time for businesses to reopen and for our economy to come back when the emergency is lifted. Stable housing is part of the foundation we need as a Commonwealth to fully recover,” said​ Attorney General Shapiro in his letter.